


One of Us

by Recarmdra



Series: OiYama Week (April 2016) [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Children, Bullying, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Friendship, Gen, Yamaguchi protection squad, oikawa iwaizumi and yamaguchi were childhood friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-15
Updated: 2016-04-15
Packaged: 2018-06-02 10:14:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6562348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Recarmdra/pseuds/Recarmdra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The young freckled kid looked up at the other boy, standing tall and brave, that even the sun gave him a glowing outline like he was radiating from the pride he showed.  “I’m Space Ranger Tooru! Protector of every specie of the universe!”</p><p>  <b>Day 2 (4/15): <s>College</s> / Space <b></b></b></p>
            </blockquote>





	One of Us

**Author's Note:**

> What if it was Oikawa and Iwaizumi that saved Yamaguchi met instead of Tsukishima? This is a short story of how they (could have) met! This isn't really shippy; it's quite platonic actually since this is based on their childhood. The dynamics of their characters would change a lot since it's the three of them, I think, but I hope that what I did is okay. Enjoy!

It was a normal day for Yamaguchi: hanging out with the wrong people both out of fear. Being the lackey; the person to poke fun at -- figuratively and literally. He’s crying again. They’re laughing again. It’s the same as every other day he was with them until a change suddenly came his way--

“Hey! Get away from him!”

The larger kids stopped when they heard a voice calling them out. Yamaguchi only realized it when he was peeking behind his arm, finding a silhouette of an older kid standing across them, holding something like a large gun -- and just like that, groans and complaints were heard, telling the other to stop, about how an older kid wasn’t being fair, about how they’re going to get in trouble with their mothers for getting wet. It was quite ironic, really, but it does work to drive off the bullies from him.

Yamaguchi, speechless - and still rather terrified from his experience - avoids eye contact as he felt footsteps approaching. He is rather intimidated too by the large neon-colored water gun the boy held in his arms in fear that he was next, but felt subtle relief when it was put away by the brunet. With this, the young freckled kid finally looked up at the other boy, standing tall and brave -- that even the sun gave him a glowing outline. -- like he was radiating from the pride he showed. It was...really cool, actually.

“Who...Who are you?” He managed to stutter.

“Me?” The boy blinked, before he flashed a large introductory grin: one hand on his hip, the other holding up the water gun. But Yamaguchi noticed he was missing a tooth. “I’m Space Ranger Tooru! Protector of every specie of the universe!”

“Whoa...” was the first thing that managed to escape the freckled child, his words only sinking in a moment after. “Space...Ranger...? Specie?” What are those?

“Yeah! What’s your name?” Failing to notice that Yamaguchi had no clue on what a space ranger nor a specie was, he held out his hand for the other to take. The smaller hesitantly does, and wobbles when he was back on his feet. When he looked up, the bright-eyed brunet was staring at him, brown eyes wide with interest. It caught him off guard, and he found himself taking a step back. “Whoa, you have stars in your face. That’s pretty cool!”

Yamaguchi unconsciously brought a hand to his face to touch the freckles the boy called -- “Stars...?”

“Yeah, you know! Like the stars you see at the night! It’s like you have them on your face.”

“Ah...” That was a strange comparison, he thought, but he supposed it wasn’t a bad thing. His freckles being like stars, that is. Stars are nice, aren’t they? “But...um...I’m Tadashi.” Looking up at the taller boy, he shies away the moment he realized he had been intently staring at him all this time. What is he staring at me like that for?

“Hey, kid!” Yamaguchi almost winces at the sudden call, but the following words surprise him, “Want to be a Space Ranger too?”

His eyes widened, sparkling with interest that immediately answered “yes” -- which followed with a sullen look that said “or maybe not”. Yamaguchi meekly fiddled with his fingers -- a habit of his. “I-I can’t be a Space Ranger... I’m too weak and...I’m small...a-and I’m not cool...” Tooru saw it himself, didn’t he? Those bullies towered over him and knocked him down with a single shove. He can’t fight anything. He can’t protect anything like Tooru.

“No way! Anyone can be a Space Ranger! You just have to be a good person, and you just have to want to protect! Doesn’t matter if you can! You just have to want! And that’s all that matters in becoming a Space Ranger! You have what it takes to be a Space Ranger, and not those bullies!” After the uplifting speech of the reasons why Yamaguchi should join the Space Rangers (AKA play with him), his nose scrunches at the memory of the bullies, when suddenly he was pulled from his thoughts by the boy who looked like had something to say-- it was his turn to be surprised.

“That makes you a...Super Space Ranger, doesn’t it?”

“Huh?”

“Because you went and stopped the bullies.” Oikawa doesn’t only want to help, but he can help. That makes him pretty great, doesn’t it?

Oikawa is taken aback, though he looked rather thoughtful about it. He never thought of it that way, but he liked the sound of that -- Super Space Ranger Tooru -- it was something to boast about with Iwaizumi. Oh right! He was still playing with him before he got involved with Tadashi--

And as if on cue, Oikawa was sprayed with water, surprising both boys at the sudden attack. Out of instinct, Yamaguchi backed away -- or more specifically, moved behind Oikawa’s back.

“Did you forget I was hiding!? What’s up with that!?” The other kid with short black hair arrived with his own neon-colored gun, grimacing at the taller boy -- they seemed to know each other, Yamaguchi guessed -- but that look on his face was way too scary.

“Sorry! I saw him being picked on by some other kids, so I had to stop them you know!”

The smallest of the three finally peeked from behind Tooru, meeting eyes with the tanned-skinned kid. His hard expression turned soft for a moment upon eye contact, before looking at the brunet in approval. “Oh. Well, that’s fine,” He approached a little closer, and for some reason, Yamaguchi felt a little safer. Accepted. “Hey kid, wanna play with us? We were playing Space Rangers.”

“Iwa-chan is the alien!”

“Because Oikawa whines when he’s not the Space Ranger.”

“I do not!”

Iwaizumi looks at Yamaguchi as if he was showing the evidence, and the freckled boy couldn’t help but quietly laugh. Tooru and Iwa-chan -- they didn’t seem like bad guys. He moved from Oikawa’s back to a safe distance between them, again, feebly playing with his thumbs. “Um...is it really okay if I play with you guys? Even though I’m not your age?”

“Yeah, why not?” Oikawa shrugged -- quite indifferent about the age gap. As long as they have fun, age doesn’t matter. Iwaizumi seemed to have the same sentiments. “Anyway, I told Tadashi-kun that he’ll be a space ranger, so...get ready Iwa-chan!”

“No way! That’s unfair!”

“Start running, Alien Iwa-chan!” Completely ignoring the complaint, Oikawa went to strike a pose, readying his water gun. Iwaizumi scowled before bolting. Oikawa turned to Yamaguchi then. “We didn’t bring another water gun, so you’ll be my spotter. For today, tell me where Iwa-chan is when you see him, okay?”

Yamaguchi nodded with a bright smile on his face. For today, he said. That means ... there’ll be another day.

“Let’s go, Space Ranger Yama-chan! After we get Alien Iwa-chan,, we’ll teach you something called volleyball.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Are you ready to go, Space Ranger Tooru?” A fifteen year old Yamaguchi called from the ground floor of the Oikawa residence, standing beside an Iwaizumi who was getting impatient. They were going to go camping today and stargaze, they decided -- and as usual, it was Oikawa who took the longest to prepare, with all his equipment and belongings that were exclusively for the event.

It took only a few moments after his call, before the brunet was jogging down the stairs, almost looking embarrassed. “Yeesh. You still remember that?” He asked, slinging a large bag over his shoulder. “--We’re heading out!” He called, and they hear Oikawa’s mother telling them to take care. It was already routine, the way they continue their conversation outside as they began their walk to the station. 

 

“Well...yeah. You drove the bullies away and asked me to be a space ranger. Then Iwa-chan came and got angry because you forgot you were playing with him.”

“Oh, I remember that.” Iwaizumi responded thoughtfully, before redirecting a scowl at the taller brunet, “I was about to ambush Oikawa on top of a tree, but he never came.”

“Hey now, let’s focus on the fact I saved Yama-chan.”

 

Iwaizumi almost rolled his eyes, but he had a point. If he hadn’t done that, then they wouldn’t have become the good friends they were now, would they?

“I think that was the day that changed my life.”

“Whoa, that’s super sentimental.” Oikawa chuckled, though he doesn’t attempt any means to invalidate the feeling. Maybe that was the day that changed his and Iwaizumi’s life too - but they don’t regret anything. They were happy like this. “And on an important note, it’s _Super_   Space Ranger Tooru.”

It was almost simultaneous how Yamaguchi and Iwaizumi turned to the setter with a lazy glare.

“Please stop.”

**Author's Note:**

> There you have it! I hope the ending is okay - may have been a little off because I was trying to catch up on schedule. Thank you for reading!


End file.
